20 November 2020
Red & Black
Opinions 15
Sustainability for Dummies: How to Help the Environment
Courtesy Washington & Jefferson College
W&J students can combat global warming in small ways: recycling and reducing the use of fossil fuels.
Nate Sciarro Red & Black Contributor
The term sustainability means the capacity to endure. This is something that is practiced right here at Washington & Jefferson College. Now one could probably argue if this is the first time you’re seeing the word sustainability and W&J together, then you most likely have no idea what I’m talking about. Sustainability, in simpler words, can be described by a simple question: how can we preserve the world? I use the term “world,” as opposed to “planet,” because sustainability is more than just environmental concerns. It
is heavily correlated to economics, including small businesses and urban planning, as well as social aspects such as race, gender, age, dealing with environmental injustice and disproportionate siting’s of landfill sites. At W&J, the constant aspiration to become sustainable is a large goal of the faculty and staff of the college. Each day, the college is looking for new ways to be sustainable, on top of the steps already taking place. For example, a project began by 2014 W&J graduate Evan Rosenberg to generate solar power on campus acted in 2012 and has since then been able to power 90 homes in Washington. W&J has also been taking part and collaborating with the local Main Street Farmers Market to inform students of the importance of local and small businesses. I recently took the time to survey a couple of
current students, to ask them about sustainability. Freshman football player Justin Huss had this to say when asked: What is Sustainability? “I’ve heard of it, but don’t know anything about it.” As I have experienced firsthand, our generation is unsure and uninformed about sustainability, which is quite frightening considering that the world we find ourselves living in could be drastically different in the coming years. Global warming, which is an increase of the earth’s atmospheric pressure, is a topic relevant to sustainability and is also quite an alarming topic when discussing the future of our planet. According to a recent study done by Michelle Tigchelaar, a member of the Atmospheric Sciences Department at Washington University, “At a twodegree Celsius global temperature rise, the planet will reach irreversible
tipping points.” Currently, global temperatures are one-degree Celsius above pre-industrial averages, and if the two-degree increase becomes relevant, the world as we know it is going to change. Regular citizens like you can help combat the advancement of global warming by doing small things like recycling, and reducing the use of fossil fuels to help reduce your carbon footprint, which is simply the amount of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere. Like Huss, freshman Brandon Brown is unsure about what sustainability means, and knows nothing about it. The first step to becoming sustainable is helping younger generations to understand the meaning and importance of sustainability, and how making our planet more sustainable, will better the world, for years and years to come.
